On the way back from the psychedelic supermarket today, one of three heavy trips at three different psychedelic supermarkets, I noticed something upon a crowded bus. It was rush hour, so there were lots of cars rushing around, queues at traffic lights, waiting for the busy roads ahead of them to clear so they could steer into another queue behind more cars waiting at more traffic lights. But as the bus drove by in the shadows of the twilight I saw squashed into the middle of the bus between Portuguese ladies and a narrow aisle, someone’s back, standing out clear as day – Gerrard 8.
The three psychedelic supermarkets exist in a triangle from The Archive, one, the furthest away at the point and the other two closer at the base. Each has their own special versions of the same thing, so you have to go to all three to get the best of what you want. On the way to one of these, I walked past the second-hand furniture warehouse and popped in to see if they would help us move Archive records and shelves from the Porto storage to The Archive proper, I was told “no”, they only work internally. As I was there I saw a wavy red vase, €1 with a slight paint chip. From there to the second post office to pick up a package. At first, I went to the wrong one, the friendly one, high hopes. They directed me to the right one where I got my package, having to explain in Spanish why I had already signed for it, which I had done at the first wrong post office. What was it? You got it, it was a record.
Thanks to Michel from France who had sent me a double album from 2023 – Salvatore Adamo (who is Belgian/Italian) singing classic English songs in French. The first track being J’dis pas qu’ je t’aime – 10cc’s classic I’m Not in Love (1975), a duet with Jane Birkin, perhaps her last studio recording. What else was in there? A single by Voulzy from 1981, whose B-side is called Ricken (Ballade pour une guitare disparue un été à New York) with a picture of a Rickenbacker 12-string, this disturbing prescient single is a must for the collection as Michel recognised. Last but not least, a fascinating philatelist’s wonder, the first stamp from 1849 posted on a letter from Michel’s hometown. Thank you, Michel and thank you to everybody that has donated to The Archive’s collections whether they be records, cassettes, singles, concert tickets, magazines, posters or stamps.
Music today has been the very first Herbie Hancock album Takin’ Off (1962). It features the jazz standard Watermelon Man, allegedly played live by David Bowie’s Manish Boys and recorded 200 times by other artists.